Sin is a funny thing.  As my professor would say, it’s not funny ‘haha’ but funny ‘peculiar.’  Coveting, murder, lust, gluttony, and idolatry are all sin and eventually hurt us as well as others.  Though we can immediately identify these as negative and harmful, it is more difficult to spot them when they have not yet developed into the monsters they become.  In his book Jesus for President, Shane Claiborne says this:

Most of the ugliness in the human narrative comes from a distorted quest to possess beauty.  Coveting begins with appreciating blessings.  Murder begins with a hunger for justice.  Lust begins with a recognition of beauty.  Gluttony begins when our enjoyment of the delectable gifts of God starts to consume us.  Idolatry begins when our seeing a reflection of God in something beautiful leads to our thinking that the beautiful image bearer is worthy of worship.

If you have a strong passion for justice, an appreciation for beauty, or a love for cooking, be sure to keep them in their proper place.  Sin often is birthed out of what we love, not what we hate.

Michelle

Have you ever seen the movie Newsies? It’s based on the true story in the early 20^th century when the Newsies (boys that sold newspapers on the streets) of New York went on strike when the price of newspapers jumped.

When the lead character Jack Kelly was asked the question: “What makes the headlines good?” He answered in his thick New York Accent, “Aw, you know, catchy woids like…maniac, corpse…let’s see…lovenest, nude…”

What caused you to click on this post? Did the word nude attract you? Why?

Why do words like sex, nude and naked draw people into read? If you’re a dude, is it because you (we) think you will see a picture that reflects the title? If you’re a woman, is it because you think you will read a romantic fantasy that doesn’t reflect real life? What is it?

What I do know is that it draws us in and I highly doubt it is because we think the story will give us great biblical lessons on how not to commit adultery or stay pure for our future spouse.

I think we read it because we are sinners and our world makes money off our sin. I think we read it because we like the excitement of rebellion. I think we read it because perhaps, just perhaps, lust has become more important to us than Jesus.

I can’t help but ask myself the question: how much can we blame on our society and how much of the responsibility should we put on ourselves?

For Jesus’ fame,
JK

Right now I’m in Costa Rica, working as a chef at an eco resort. It’s been fun. And a great learning experience. I love the people I work with.  Including the new guy.  He’s 27 years old.  And he’s gay.

This wouldn’t been super abnormal if I was back in Canada.  But we’re in Costa Rica, where being gay is still pretty discouraged. There are about 50 people on staff here.  They’re all locals who actually live at the resort in dorms.  So the new guy, the gay guy, sleeps in a room with 5 others guys.

I can’t imagine how hard this place must be for him.  He sits alone when he eats.  None of the other guys talk to him.  No one to talk to. Just work and sleep and be alone. And who knows what kind of temptations he feels being surrounded by hard-working Costa Rican men?

My heart is broken for him.  He’s so lonely. So alone.

It’s reminding me SO MUCH that Jesus loves PEOPLE- black people, white people, rich people, poor people, straight people, gay people.  I’m reminded that God came to bring people and love and grace and encouragement and lifechange and healing to everyone.

And so I’m making every effort to show God’s love.  I’m making every effort to live like Jesus. To be that healing grace. To be that friend to the lonely.  To be that encourager of talents.  It’s been an amazing two weeks.  I can truly say that we’ve become friends.  I can now say that I think I love a gay man.

Because it’s what Jesus would do.

Jay

New post by Michelle on taking credit for God’s work in our lives…Goodie Two-Shoes

The start doesn’t matter…it’s the end that really matters.

Old Man #1 had a vision. A dream.  A plan. He worked hard and got some money together and bought the old Sleeman mansion.

Originally owned by John Sleeman (the brewery guy), it’s a gorgeous limestone castle right by the main highway in Guelph, and directly across my the church I grew up in.  Old Man #1 had no intentions of turning the beautiful churchside castle into a house or a hotel.  Rather, he turned it into Guelph’s first and finest upscale strip joint.

Years later, Old Man #1 was in a car accident while vacationing in Florida.  He was gripped with the reality that life was short and that he’d been devoting his life to sin.  He quit the business…and started attending the church directly across the road from his landmark success.

For decades, he prayed that it would get shut down.  In his lifetime, and to this day, it remains Guelph’s most popular destination for sexual sin of all kinds (including, recently, trafficking).  The old man never got over the guilt he felt for his earlier choices.  He worked and campaigned hard to get it shut down.  He made his life all about loving people, winning some to Christ, and seeing the Kingdom of God grow because of his loving servanthood.  Old Man #1 had a bad start, but an excellent finish.

(not actual grumpy old man!)

Old Man #2 grew up in church.  In fact, when I knew him, he’d been a member of that (same strip-joint-adjacent) church for many decades.  He vehemently opposed the people who visited the strip joint, and very unlovingly disapproved of their actions. Not that it was a bad thing, just that he didn’t show much love in going about it.

Like most of us, he’d never been wrong a day in his life.  He was a sour, codgy old curmudgeon.  One day my friend John and I walked from school to church for a young gathering followed by a baptism. He’d never met us before, but thought it necessary to yell at us for wearing our hats “in the house of the Lord.”  (we were three feet into the foyer).  It broke our hearts.  Here’s a dude with wealth and knowledge and experience and family and a great church…but with no love in his heart.  He died a bitter old man.  Maybe in his younger days he was on fire for the things of God, but the end was self-evident…good start, bad finish.

How are you going to make sure that you finish well?